The shrinking violets official thread - Team 1

hi all have you had a good day?
ive been working extra hard today to make up for my bad week! i feel soooo positive about this now ive got size 16 jeans on! got myself a pair of levis off ebay i only ever dreamed of wearing a pair not actually puting them on!!...xx
hi gem sorry to see u had another cr*p day! things can only get better for you and they will!!...xx
 
thanks Jan! good news on the 16s!!!

just been to Jazzercise and feeling great! my abs were killing me all the way through which is only a good sign!!! my bingo wings are smaller and less flappy aswell!!!:party0011: also got rid of my crippling period pains while i was doing it but unfortunately they are back now :( oh well...this explains the 3lbs loss last week!!! xxx
 
hi there, just 2lbs off this week, not my usual 3 lbs. Don't know whether it was my 7 mile walk or the gin and slimline I had last night in London ( :ashamed0005:I know) I didn't particularly want it, and still drank 3 pints of water, it is just I feel awful pressure to be sociable. Hate the idea of being a party pooper and I think my friends know that and use it!

Aw well, it's still a loss, and I did lose 4lbs last week. Hopefully that will mean a good loss next week. No trips to London scheduled thankfully. Can't decide whether to go for a ramble again this weekend or not, I suppose I'll let the weather decide. I don't do walking in the rain!

Good luck on Friday Helen, I went to Warwick uni and lived in Leamington for a year.

Well done on getting into a 16 jeans Smurf :party0011:. It must feel wonderful. I have a few pairs of 16 trousers but you've inspired me to go and try on a pair of 16's levis this weekend.

Well done Hayley on resisting a drink the other night :clap:. With that kind of willpower you really deserve a loss and to get through this wedding relatively unscathed. Don't worry about eating all that protein on 810. I find I can't eat it all. Just have a reasonable sized portion of protein and be more careful about measuring the veg.

More good luck for tomorrow Gem.....:vibes::vibes::vibes:

What day does gtpeach weigh in?
 
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Warning: Long, whinging, moaning post!!!

Hi everyone!!!

I'm feeling awful this morning. I have a dicky tummy so haven't gone to work. I don't want to pass it around-we have enough people off ill already!!! Mind you I think it might be due to my TOTM anyway but better to be safe than sorry! If I pass it around it will only be me covering their lessons and I can't handle anymore!

I'm hoping I will be better for tomorrow. Mind you, NOTHING will stop me going to that interview! I'm really looking forward to it. I cannot put into words how much I want that job. I feel a bit lost at the moment future wise. I can't seem to settle on what I want to do with my life. I have far too many aspirations and I can't do them all. For instance:

1) I want a degree-this I will do. I have always wanted a degree and that is the one thing that hasn't changed in my mind. It's finding out what to do the degree in that is challenging me. I have tried English Literature, Philosophy, Science and now Maths. I'm starting to wonder again. Everytime I seem to settle on a subject, I find I either don't like it or want to do something else!!!

2) I want to help people-this is fuelling my desire to become a CDC. I feel that if I can help people to reach their goals and help dispel some of the misery in their lives then it will be so worthwhile.

3) I want to work with animals-this is achieveable even with the 2 options above. Hopefully I will get this job and then even if I do go on to become a CDC I will be able to volunteer at an animal shelter one day a week or something.

4) I want to study Egyptology-this is something I have always wanted to do. "So why don't you do a degree in Egyptology?" I hear you say! Well, I keep thinking about this but what job would I get with that? Also, the only universities that offer Egyptology are:

Birmingham
Liverpool
Oxford
Swansea
London

I do not want to have to live in Birmingham, Liverpool or London. Swansea maybe as we are planning to move to Wales in the near future but not just yet. Oxford...well...come on! You need to have straight As at A Level for Oxford and that is something I do not have. So do I wait a few years to move to Wales and try and get in at Swansea? I just don't know!!!

5)I want to teach-or do I? After working as a teaching assistant and hating it, I'm not so sure about teaching now...which makes my current degree path a bit useless! So do I stop it now before I get too far in and waste time and money or what??? Help!!!!

So as you can see, I can't make up my mind and it is really distressing me. I have wasted the past 6 years of my life fannying around trying to decide what to do!

Frances-don't worry about the drink. I'm sure it had no effect on your weigh in at all. And 3lbs is a great loss!!! Well done! Not sure when GTPeach weighs in to be honest.

Sorry for the long whinging post guys :( I just had to get it all out! I'm now going to post all that in my blog as I have run out of things to write about!!!

Gem x
 
You remind me so much of myself. I too am interested in Egyptology. Have you ever been? I was gonna treat myself to a cruise up the Nile for my 40th, but never go around to it. Then I thought I would do a short course on it first, but never did. Might still go for my 45th.

I too lurrrvve cats, and also recently, dogs. Hate to see or hear of them being mistreated. Have supported the Cats Protection League for years, even visited their big head office/campus a few months ago (near Haywards Heath) and thought it was great. It is wonderful to know that they are doing a fantastic job and that cats are valued and looked after.

I have recently realised that it is not the right course, or a hobby, that I am really looking for, but a cause and I think children would be really worthwhile. Thinking of looking at the NSPCC and finding out about volunteer work. Want to do more than just give money. Looking for someone who would benefit from my time/help. Because I am self employed I can give more of that now.

Only you can decide what to do about teaching. All I can say is that some schools are better run than others, and when you are qualified surely you would be in a better position workwise?

On courses, when choosing a degree, you must go purely by your gut instinct and choose what you love most. Do short Open University courses to try different subjects out before you commit. As far as I know you can collect points for each course you do and you could even perhaps make up a degree by doing two completely different subjects? I did English Lit so I am biased. But maybe just do a distance learning course on Egyptology, to see if you like it, and pick one of the others for a degree?

You'll get there. Like dieting, it is all about small steps.
xx
 
Thanks Frances. I have been doing the short courses. I did the science ones and then decided that doing a whole degree in it would totally do my head in! I hate doing experiments and that's a pretty vital part. I am trying to find some distance learning Egyptology courses but they are few and far between.

I haven't ever been to Egypt but we were planning on going for our honeymoon. We can't afford it so might have to make it a second honeymoon jobby!

I love dogs too :) and horses. At least working at Wood Green I would get to see the lot!

It's just really hard for me because when I was at school I was always the one who knew where I was going and what I was going to do. Now most of my classmates have done their training/studying and are where they want to be. I feel like such a failure! I know success shouldn't be measured by how much studying you have done or what job you have. I feel that when I am truly happy with my job and working life then I will be a success.

I know I will get there eventually it's just frustrating now! x
 
You are not a failure at all, you are just so multi-talented that you cannot decide which direction you want to go in! Quite unusual to have a science and english bent. People are often one or the other. Have you ever considered perhaps finding a life coach to help you sort out your priorities? I'm not necessarily recommending it as I have never done it, just suggesting it if it is really doing your head in. I think you will get there very soon, you are sorting it out in your head all the time. The answers will come to you while you are busy doing something else.

Hope you feel better soon.
 
I think you are right Frances. What would I do without you!

Egyptology excites me and I am really passionate about it-I have been since I was a kid. I mean who says I have to study something that will get me a well paid job? I would happily study Egyptology and become a museum curator or something. As long as I am earning enough money to pay the rent etc, who says I have to have a 'sensible' job? I need to do what makes me happy I guess whatever that is.

I have found some distance learning Egyptology courses and have emailed to ask about them. Fingers crossed I may have made a breakthrough!!!

Thanks for all your advice :) x
 
No problem. You're getting there. Since you, and I, have found it so hard to find Egyptology courses, doesn't that tell you something? There's a gap in the market there. Maybe when you are qualified you could approach a college near you and offer to give one?! That could also be combined with being CDC and volunteering at the animal place. Sorted!

It is far more important to do the things you love than shoehorn yourself into a career than doesn't really give you satisfaction. You are lucky to have realised that early in your life/career!
 
Wow, well done you two, it just shows you the importance of talking, and now you have found a solution you are happy with, in my opinion thats the hardest part.

Gem- try not to feel too disheartened i began my degree majoring in English lit and minoring in Psychology, at the end of the 1st year i found what i was passionate about, and the university let me start the 2nd year on yr 2 psychology Bsc. Having said that i often questioned my decision in the remaining 2 years as not all of the specialist areas appealed to me (cognitive neuropsychology for one) but the key is to make sure you are still interested in the discipline. I must have been i signed up for the Msc the following year lol.

It's really interesting to hear about everything going on in each others lives. So, i've got my fingers crossed for you 2moro hun (Gem) and at least that is a step in the right direction for you.

Love the new pic frances! Really glad you joined the team.

How are you Helen, Jan and GT any gossip?

xxx
 
Thanks Hayley! I shall report back tomorrow evening. The best part is Mike has got the day off now and has kindly offered to drive me there. Isn't he sweet?

I suppose all this changing my mind business is not too worrying. It is after all a woman's prerogative to change her mind!!!

No gossip unfortunately! I like hearing about other people's lives too. It's nice to know more about each other. Makes the team seem more close knit then :gen126: x

I have a question for anyone who is willing to answer! How did you end up overweight? Was it just eating too much or were there other contributing factors?

I was always bigger or so I thought. Looking back at old pics I can see I wasn't that fat at all!!! I had a huge fallout with my mum just as I left for uni. So I was living away from home and away from friends. I just sat in my room all day and night and ate and ate and ate!!! Silly really because I was already miserable about my weight-surely you would think that I would have seen that eating was only going to make it worse!!!! Anyway, it just carried on and on and on, even after I met Mike. It was only when I saw a friend of mine had lost a lot on Cambridge that I saw it as a quick solution and jumped on board! So glad I did!!! xxx
 
I don't know really. Have always been a few stone over weight. Love of chocolate I suppose, and just eating and drinking what others were eating round me, but never cutting back to make up for it. I reckon they did. I have never been higher than 16 stone. I'm only 5,3 and for some reason that has always been my cut-off point, where I go on another diet.

Twenty years ago I got down to a dinky 11 stone with WW. Always regretted not getting to my goal weight back then, because when it started creeping on a few years later, WW didn't seem to work as well, and neither did all the other diets I tried. It just led me to believe I had messed up my metabolism. I have lost that stone between 15 and 14 at least 5 times in my life!

Just wish that I had found CD years ago, but I don't know if I would have stuck to it as well without Minimins!
 
This forum is such a life saver. I don't know if I could have stuck to it for so long without having people to talk to.

Also my CDC is the best! She keeps me motivated all the time! x
 
My poor wee CDC is going through a break-up at the mo and her ex is being a real pain, so I ended up supporting her yesterday. Poor woman. She accepted an offer on the house, and he won't take it because it is just £5,000 less than the asking price. He is just doing this to make life diff for her, no one turns down an offer that close to the asking price, especially in these times.

Yes, it is Minimins that is keeping me on this diet, not just the constant support but seeing so many other people make it. Also, this really is the last diet I will ever do. Even if it means being on a diet for the rest of my life!

My weight has held me back too much in my life already. It's not just about the clothes I want to wear, and wanting to see how it feels to be 9 stone something, it's because I want to show 'em. I work in a very male-orientated industry. I am just so sick of being ignored because I am overweight, and being made to feel invisible sometimes in a room full of people.
 
Bless her heart. Poor wee CDC :(

I would love to think that this is the only diet I will ever do. I am determined to succeed and keep it off but I am sure when I have children I may have to fight to get my figure back! I don't mind that so much because I will have beautiful children to show for being overweight whereas now I have nothing except a three tier wedding cake stomach! x
 
RIGHT!

I've officially had enough now.

It seems I have lost my paper counterpart driving licence, my birth certificate and my car logbook!!!

I blame my job because I took them all in to be photocopied for my CRB Disclosure and brought them home and now they are gone. I can't help thinking I have accidentally thrown them away as they were all in an envelope together :cry:

If I hadn't have been doing this stupid job it would never have happened! I have turned our room upside down trying to find them. I am supposed to be taking my birth certificate to my interview today. My passport is 5 years out of date so I only have my photocard driving licence as ID and my NI card. I can't prove that I was born in the UK!!! I'm taking my passport with me just in case it is of some use. My other jobs in the past have accepted it so I don't see why this one won't.

It worries me now because if I did throw them away, anyone could have them now! I mean I know without photo ID they aren't much used but still!!!

When are things going to turn around for me? I seem to have the worst luck in the world!!! x
 
Oh dear, poooor you. What an absolute pain! Just try and focus on your interview, you have enough to prove who you are. Then at the weekend, when you are calmer, have a proper tidy up and look very carefully. Have you checked the glove compartment of the car? Every single cupboard? Down the back of the sofa? Look really thoroughly for a good week, and then go about replacing them. It is only bad luck if you let it get to you. Make your own good luck!

Good luck with the interview.
 
((((((((((((((hugs )))))))))))))))))))) don't panic Gem, you can always explain and drop them in when you find/replace them.

Don't forget to post results for the team challenge tonight if you haven't already done so.

Have a good day everyone!

xxx

Ps- Sorry for short post in a rush be back later xx
 
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